Explore the world of Thai cooking with Vancouver YouTuber Pailin Chongchitnant as your guide

In Thailand, ketchup is “the epitome of Western ingredients,” Pailin Chongchitnant says in one of her popular YouTube videos. It’s a clip devoted to demonstrating one of the ways Thai people prepare pasta – pad macaroni. Central to the sauce is, you guessed it, ketchup. But if you see someone putting ketchup in pad Thai – “that is wrong and wrong,” Chongchitnant says. “It is essentially a westernized pad Thai by definition.”

As Vancouver-based Chongchitnant writes in her first cookbook, Hot Thai Kitchen (Appetite by Random House, 2016): “I like to say that all traditional dishes are authentic, but not all authentic dishes are traditional.” She was born and raised in Thailand, and through an examination of her native cuisine, she has come up with her own standard when looking at the two. “Authentic dishes are dishes that use the ingredients that are local to our cuisine. So if you put ketchup in pad Thai that is not authentic no matter how you look at it because ketchup is not an ingredient that is native to Thai cuisine,” she explains in an interview, emphasizing her belief that ingredients are what characterize Thai food.

“If you change the noodles, and instead of using rice noodles you use glass noodles, it’s still authentic because it’s just a variation. You’re still using Thai ingredients; you’re just doing something different. And guess what? A glass noodle pad Thai is extremely common in Thailand,” Chongchitnant says. “There are tons of variations on pad Thai and only one of them is traditional – it’s the one with the rice noodles. But the rest of them are just new ways people are experimenting with the dish. And they are still authentic but they’re not traditional.”

Chongchitnant started her YouTube channel, Pailin’s Kitchen, while working as a chef in the San Francisco Bay Area after completing a culinary arts degree at Le Cordon Bleu. She takes an educational approach with her videos, and has extended her teachings to Hot Thai Kitchen. The book isn’t simply a collection of recipes, although there are certainly plenty of those, including lesser-known dishes such as sour curry with Thai omelette (gaeng som) and nam prik, a dip that is a mainstay on many family tables in Thailand. It’s a comprehensive resource, full of information designed to arm home cooks with the cultural context necessary to understand Thai cuisine.

“A cuisine is so much more than just the mere sum of its dishes. You have to understand the bigger picture of it. How do people eat it? What does the dish go with? What are the ingredients that go into it? How do the ingredients behave? And once you understand that, you will not be just following instructions,” Chongchitnant says. One of her goals is that ultimately, readers will have the know-how required to improvise Thai dishes, and cook like a local.

In the book, she delves into the culture of eating in Thailand, understanding Thai ingredients, equipment and tools, and the structure of Thai dishes. “When people see the food in context – see how we eat it – they understand it better, and with that understanding comes confidence. Really, I try to breed confidence in cooking Thai. Because I’ve talked to so many people from around the world, and the one thing they don’t have is confidence when they cook Thai food,” Chongchitnant says.

Fresh Thai vegetables in particular can be hard to find in Canada, and Chongchitnant advises asking at your local Thai restaurant to find out where they buy their produce. But perhaps most of all, she wants home cooks to become familiar with the flavours and how to use Thai ingredients, and feel free to make educated substitutions. For example, she recommends using the inner stalks and leaves of celery in place of Chinese celery, or broccoli or kale in place of Chinese broccoli, if need be. “A lot of times, people are a little stressed out making Thai food because they don’t want to make it wrong. And they ask me questions like, ‘Do you think I can use broccoli instead?'” she says. “They don’t want to make it inauthentically or they don’t want to violate the tradition of Thai food. But Thai people do it all the time. When we cook at home, we don’t stick to a recipe. We throw in what we have and call it dinner. So people have to adopt the same relaxed attitude that they have about cooking their own cuisine.”

She breaks down ingredients into six categories, according to function. The idea is, once you understand that fermented soybean paste (tao jiew), for example, functions as a salting agent in Thai dishes, you will be able to exchange it for others in the same category. This knowledge sets the foundation for improvisation. “I use curry as a good example because all curries are made in a very similar way. You start with a paste, and the paste can be anything. You don’t have to do red, yellow, green; these are just the major ones. Decide whether you want to make a thick, rich curry or a light, brothy curry – so coconut milk or stock. And then, what protein do we have in the fridge? Throw it in. What vegetables do we have? Throw it in. It’s like Lego: you just need this part, that part and you customize it however you want,” Chongchitnant says with a laugh.

FAVOURITE TOOLS OF THE TRADE

Mortar and pestle, granite

“It does things other tools don’t do. Food processors chop – they don’t make a paste, they don’t grind. In Thailand we use a lot of this base paste – garlic, cilantro roots and white peppercorn – and we just need a little bit. You can’t put that in a food processor; it’s too little. But in a mortar and pestle, it doesn’t matter how small the amount is, you can still do it. And it’s easy to clean; no blades, no intricate parts, just a bowl. And when it’s not doing anything, it just sits there as a kitchen decoration – it’s pretty.”

Wok, preferably round bottom, carbon steel

“Yes, you can get away with a large sauté pan but there’s a lot of tossing and stirring, and when you’re doing it in a sauté pan that’s flat, it always jumps out of the pan. With a wok, you can really toss it around aggressively and that helps with even cooking without fear of losing things. We use a wok for everything: deep-frying, boiling, stir-frying, and steaming. If you get a good carbon steel wok, and you maintain it well, it’s naturally non-stick. You can be really rough with it and it will be fine. Nothing sticks to it.”

Gaeng Kiew Waan NeuaCooking Time: 2 hours + 30 minutes if making the curry pasteSpecial Tools: Heavy-duty mortar and pestle, or another device for making curry pasteDo-ahead Tips: Make the curry paste and braise the beef 1–2 days in advance. Or make the entire dish in advance, leaving the basil out until ready to serve.

1. In a medium-sized pot, add the beef, 1/4 cup of the coconut milk, 1 tbsp of the curry paste, and salt. Add enough of the water to completely cover the beef and bring to a simmer. Braise the beef, loosely covered, for 1 1/2–2 hours, or until the beef is fork tender. Add more water if needed to ensure that the beef stays submerged.2. Remove the beef using a slotted spoon and set aside. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the cooking liquid; if there isn’t enough, add more water to make up the difference.3. Reduce 3/4 cup of the coconut milk in a medium-sized pot over medium heat until very thick and the clear coconut oil starts to separate from the white portion, 10–15 minutes. (If this separation doesn’t happen, just proceed with the recipe after reducing until thick—sometimes coconut milk is processed to prevent separation.)4. Add the curry paste to the reduced coconut milk and cook over medium-low heat for 3–4 minutes, stirring constantly, until the curry paste is very thick. Add the remaining 1 cup of coconut milk and stir to mix. Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the reserved beef cooking liquid, makrut lime leaves, palm sugar, and 1 tbsp of the fish sauce; bring to a boil.5. When the curry boils, add the cooked beef and bamboo shoots; simmer for 3–4 minutes so they absorb the curry. Remove from the heat, taste, and adjust seasoning with the remaining fish sauce. Stir in the spur chilies and Thai basil.6. Garnish the curry with the top of a Thai basil sprig and serve with jasmine rice. It’s also common to pour green curry over rice vermicelli, pasta-style, for a one-dish meal.serves 4

Note: Use pre-cooked bamboo shoots, which are available in cans or vacuum-packed plastic bags.

Tip for Success: Remember that the rice will soften the curry’s flavour when they are eaten together, so make sure the curry is strongly seasoned.

The Method to the Madness: Why not just braise the beef in the curry sauce? If we simmered the beef in the curry, the vibrant green colour would start to fade and turn yellow from prolonged heat exposure. We work around this by braising the beef separately in a flavoured liquid, and since beef shank is full of tendons, the cooking liquid becomes a wonderfully rich beef stock that helps add body and flavour to our final product.

1. Toast the coriander seeds by adding them to a dry sauté pan and stirring constantly over medium-high heat until the seeds are aromatic and slightly darkened, about 4 minutes. Cool on a plate. Repeat with the cumin seeds.2. Using a mortar and pestle, grind the toasted coriander seeds, toasted cumin seeds, and white peppercorns into a fine powder. Remove from the mortar and set aside.3. Cut 8 of the green Thai chilies in half horizontally and, with a paring knife, scrape off and discard the seeds and pith, then finely chop along with the remaining chilies. Note: The seeds and pith are removed from some of the chilies to tone down the heat.4. Add the chopped chilies and salt to a heavy-duty mortar and pestle; pound into a fine paste. If the mixture feels too wet at any point, add some of the ground spices to absorb the liquid.5. Add the basil leaves; pound into a fine paste.6. Add the lemongrass, galangal, makrut lime zest, and cilantro roots; pound into a fine paste.7. Add the shallots, garlic, and any remaining ground spices; pound into a fine paste.8. Add the shrimp paste and pound to mix.

Note: The green colour comes primarily from the chilies, but to intensify the colour without the heat, we can add some green leaves. I’m using Thai basil because we have it for the curry anyway, but you can use other green leaves, such as spinach.

EGGPLANT STIR-FRY WITH THAI BASIL

Pad Makeua YaoCooking Time: 25 minutesDo-ahead Tips: Make the sauce in advance and store in the fridge.

1. Add 1 inch of oil in a wok or pot and bring it to 350°F over medium-high heat. Add the eggplants, a small batch at a time, and fry for 20–30 seconds. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towel. Note: We are just par-cooking the eggplants, so they should still be quite firm at this point. Do not fry them any longer than 30 seconds as they can absorb a lot of oil if they become too soft.2. Make the sauce by combining 1/4 cup of the stock with all the other sauce ingredients in a small bowl.3. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wok or a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and Thai chilies; stir until the garlic starts to brown. Add the ground pork and stir until the pork is broken apart and is about 60 per cent done.4. Add the sauce mixture and sugar, then stir to cook the pork to 90 per cent— at this point the pork should be sitting in plenty of liquid; if it looks dry, add some or all of the remaining stock.5. Add the eggplants and bell peppers; keep tossing until the eggplants are fully cooked but still hold their shape. Turn off the heat and fold in the Thai basil. Taste and adjust the seasoning.6. To serve, transfer onto a deep plate, garnish with a sprig of Thai basil, and serve with jasmine rice.serves 3-4

Note: You want young eggplants for this dish because they can maintain a firmer texture when cooked. Choose small eggplants that are firm when squeezed and have tight-looking skin. When you cut open an eggplant, a sure sign of a young one is small, light-coloured seeds, or no visible seeds at all.

Instead of fermented soybean paste (tao jiew), you can substitute 1 tbsp of miso paste, loosened with some water to achieve a pourable consistency.

Tip for Success: To test eggplant for doneness, press on a piece; it should give in to your pressure easily but bounce back. Cutting the eggplant too big will make this harder to achieve, as the outside will overcook before the inside is done. For eggplants larger than 2 inches in diameter, cut the cylinders into six pieces instead of four.

FRIED EGG SALAD

Yum Kai DaoCooking Time: 30 minutesSpecial Tools: Mortar and pestle for making the dressing (optional)Do-ahead Tips: Make the dressing in advance and store in the fridge.

1. For the dressing, pound the Thai chilies into a paste in a mortar, then add the palm sugar and pound until the sugar is dissolved. Add the lime juice and fish sauce; mix the dressing by swirling the pestle around. If not using a mortar and pestle, you can finely mince the chilies and stir all the ingredients together in a small bowl until the sugar is dissolved.2. For the fried eggs, in a wok or a small frying pan, add about 1/2 inch of oil. For best results, fry one egg at a time. Heat the oil until very hot but not smoking. Crack an egg into the centre of the pan, and turn the heat down to medium; the egg white should start bubbling excitedly right away. As the egg cooks, baste the top with the hot oil. Once the edges of the egg white are browned and crispy, and the yolk is no longer runny, remove and drain on paper towel. Repeat with the remaining eggs.3. For the salad, cut the fried eggs into bite-sized pieces and add to a large salad bowl along with the onion, Chinese celery, grape tomatoes, green onions, and cilantro. Pour the dressing over and toss gently. Taste and adjust the seasoning.4. Transfer onto a plate, sprinkle with the crushed peanuts, and serve on its own or with jasmine rice.serves 4 as an appetizer, 2 as an entrée

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.